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02/17/2025
Today, I want to tell you about the loss of our queen bee đđ
was a force of nature, a guiding light, with wicked humor and a fiery grin. She welcomed everyone into the spaces she lit up, and building community was her superpower.
She was a legend of a planner when I photographed my first wedding for a client. In 2023, as I finished treatment for breast cancer, Lisa followed my journey. Herself a BRCA carrier and mastectomy survivor, I cheered her on in her DMs. And when we finally met in person, she welcomed me with the biggest hug, made me immediately feel at home in a room of over 100 people, and introduced me to the only other woman Iâd ever me who (like me) didnât reconstruct after a mastectomy.
Thanks to Lisa, I felt truly seen for one of the first times since surviving cancer.
Last year, I ran into Lisa at an industry event - my first after a significant loss. I was a little numb and still on shock, but Lisa immediately wrapped me in the biggest hug, told me how beautiful I looked, and proceeded to introduce me to everyone she knew. She ate with me, sat through a presentation next to me. She texted me a few days later, just to check on me. Thatâs exactly the kind of person she was.
took this beautiful photo of all of us in August. Lisa organized this shoot, bringing together women in our industry who shared a difficult circumstance: we all had mastectomies. Lisa made us feel positively transcendent by engaging an amazing team of people to help us see our beauty in a world that too often measures women by the curves of their bodies. Lisa brought us together in a celebration of strength and friendship.
See, this is the thing about Lisa: she TRULY embodied the spirit of community over competition. She never missed an opportunity to make someone feel welcome. She always gave from her heart, and you could never be alone if Lisa was in the room.
Iâm heartbroken that we lost her. She was a gem of a human, the brightest light, and I will miss her smile very much. But this week and always, weâll celebrate her for the queen she was, for she deserves nothing less đđ fly high, my beautiful friend.